TOWSON, Md. - With
her three steals in tonight's 79-63 setback at Towson, W&M senior Janine
Aldridge tied the Tribe's all-time career steals mark, which she currently
shares with former W&M standout '03 Jen Sobota (257). The loss drops
W&M to 7-21 overall and 5-12 in Colonial Athletic Association play, while
Towson improves to 12-17 on the season and 5-12 in league action.
Senior Emily Correal led W&M with 15 points and eight
rebounds, while sophomore Kyla Kerstetter finished the evening with 14 points
on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor. Aldridge
finished the contest with nine points, while senior Taylor Hilton recorded
seven points and six rebounds.
The Green and Gold shot 42.6 percent (23-of-54) from the
field, which included a 50.0 percent (13-of-26) performance in the second half. W&M was an efficient 14-of-17 (82.4
percent) from the foul line.
Additionally, the Tribe held decisive advantages in bench points (24-0)
and rebounds (39-29).
In the opening sequences, it was the Tribe who asserted
itself early as senior Chanel Murchison's layup gave the Green and Gold an 8-3
lead at the 17:04 mark. Towson owned a
slim 18-14 margin after a Tanisha McTiller fast-break layup at the 12:00
juncture.
At the 10:42 mark of the opening half, Senior Jaclyn McKenna
tied the contest for the third time, 18-18, with a layup off of a feed from
sophomore Jazmen Boone. McKenna finished
the contest with six points and two rebounds, while Boone scored six points and dished out four assists.
On its ensuing possession, Kerstetter gave W&M the two-point
cushion, 20-18, as the Brentwood, Tenn., native slashed to hoop for the
two-point bucket. Towson closed the half
on a momentum-changing run as it controlled a 44-26 lead at intermission.
Nyree Williams' layup less than two minutes into the second
half pushed the Towson margin to 47-28.
Not to be outdone, the Tribe gutted its way back in to the affair as a
Correal foul shot at the 14:09 mark got W&M to within 51-41.
With momentum seeming to shift in the Tribe's favor, the
Tigers countered with six-straight points as it built a 57-41 advantage with
11:31 left in regulation. For the next seven
minutes, Towson maintained its cushion until Kerstetter's trifecta at the 4:47
juncture got W&M to within 68-58.
With 1:27 left in regulation, the Tribe cut the deficit to single
digits, 72-63, after Kerstetter's jumper.
However, Towson scored the next seven points as it put the contest out
of grasp.
Tanisha McTiller led Towson with a game-high 28 points,
while Alliyah Berger chipped in with 19 points.
The Tigers finished the game shooting 25-of-54 (46.3 percent) from the
floor, which included an 8-of-18 (44.4 percent) from 3-point range.
The Tribe will close out the regular season on Wednesday,
March 6, as it welcomes CAA foe George Mason to Kaplan Arena. Tip-off in Williamsburg, Va., is slated for 7
p.m. and fans can follow the action online at TribeAthletics.com with live
video and stats. Prior to the start of
the contest, W&M will honor is five-member senior class of Janine Aldridge,
Emily Correal, Taylor Hilton, Jaclyn McKenna and Chanel Murchison.
